LOS ANGELES – In Masters Of The Universe, the insecure Adam transforms into He-Man simply by wielding the Sword of Grayskull. But for actor Nicholas Galitzine, the transformation into the muscular 1980s hero required a Herculean effort. “I wish I could just point the sword in the sky, and then transform,” said the 31-year-old, who stars in the fantasy action film opening in Singapore cinemas on June 4. “But no, it was a massive undertaking.” For months, Galitzine’s routine revolved around eating a lot (or
a little, depending on the phase), lifting weights, and doing cardio whenever he had a spare minute. “I knew it was going to be really, really hard, but I don’t think I realised how mentally strong you have to be if you’re going to do this thing,” said the Briton, who spent much of the process enviously eyeing the food his friends were eating. “You’re working out five, six days in a row, and you come into work, and you just really, really, really don’t
feel like doing it. “You have to tell yourself: ‘no matter what, I’m not missing a workout today.’” Before mastering the universe and his caloric intake, Galitzine turned heads as Prince Henry in the adaptation of gay romance Red, White & Royal Blue (2023), and wooed Anne Hathaway as a boy band singer in romance drama The Idea Of You (2024). He didn’t grow up playing with the classic Mattel action figures or watching the 1983 animated series, much less the 1987 big-screen adaptation starring
Dolph Lundgren, but he said he was drawn to the project as soon as he read the script – “laughing almost all the way through it”. “And as soon as I finished the script, I called my agent and I said: ‘I need to do this movie’.” Humour, he said, was a key part of the film directed by American film-maker Travis Knight, co-founder of the stop-motion studio Laika, responsible for hits like Kubo And The Two Strings (2016) and Coraline (2009). “How we meet
Adam, there’s a lot of comedy. he’s a bit of a goofy guy, not totally comfortable in his own skin, so there was lots of material to play with,” added Galitzine. And after learning what the franchise has meant to generations of fans, he said “the love and desperation to play the character kind of grew”. Galitzine shares the screen with Riverdale (2017 to 2023) star Camila Mendes, in the role of his friend Teela, and fellow Brit Idris Elba who plays trusted general Duncan,
Adam’s close friend and mentor. The trio face off against the evil Skeletor (Jared Leto) and his right-hand woman, the sorceress Evil-Lyn (Alison Brie), in a fight for Adam’s home planet Eternia. For Mendes, 31, taking on the role of a strong heroine was a longed-for opportunity. “Teela is sort of that grounding force throughout the film,” said the American actress. That grounding role is seen in interplay between Teela and both Adam and Duncan, her father. “There’s humour in watching Teela get frustrated with
the two of them because they’re sort of all over the place, and she’s like, ‘Oh, great, I have to do it myself once again,’” she said with a laugh. Mendes described the intense physical preparation for the role as “the happiest time” of her life. “All I was doing was going to work and getting to twirl a sword and bow staff around,” she said. “It was really cool.” Elba, 53, said he relished the chance to introduce the franchise he grew up with
to a new generation, including co-stars like Mendes, who also did not experience He-Man in its original era. “I think good IP has that opportunity to reimagine good art. We’re still doing Shakespeare, and we’re still doing biblical stories,” he added, noting that revisiting well-known material allows storytellers to connect it with younger audiences. AFP, REUTERS Masters Of The Universe opens in Singapore cinemas on June 4.
Nicholas Galitzine, He-Man, Masters Of The Universe, Sword of Grayskull, Camila Mendes, Idris Elba, Skeletor, Evil-Lyn, Teela, Duncan, Travis Knight